Publications by authors named "Taishi Tsuji"

Background: Taiso is a Japanese term encompassing meanings akin to calisthenics. Taiso is a widely used exercise program in Japan but whether it prevents functional disability and dementia remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the association between practicing Taiso, especially focusing on the well-known Radio-Taiso, and functional disability and dementia in older adults in Japan.

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Background: Few studies have shown that relatively younger children and adolescents (those born later in the same school year) were less likely to engage in physical activity in a phenomenon termed the relative age effect. Although these studies mainly targeted elementary and middle school students, no study has reported on the relative age effect on physical activity in ordinary high school students. Moreover, the relative age effect on sedentary behavior might show an opposite association with physical activity.

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Background: No municipal-level study has elucidated the social determinants associated with multimorbidity prevalence (MP).

Objective: This article aimed to determine the differences in MP among municipalities and investigate factors associated with such differences through an ecological study of data obtained from a nationwide survey. This article focused on social participation and household income, which are associated with single chronic diseases, such as hypertension.

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Aim: Preventing functional disability benefits the quality of life of older adults and mitigates the economic burden of an aging society. However, the most effective physical performance tests and optimal cut points for identifying older adults at risk of functional disability remain unclear, and Japan lacks physical function-based assessment tools. We aimed to identify the physical performance tests related to functional disability and to develop a predictive test battery for it.

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  • Individuals with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have a heightened likelihood of committing elder abuse, suggesting a potential cycle of violence that extends beyond childhood.
  • A cross-sectional study analyzed data from over 13,000 participants in Japan, revealing that 8.5% reported abusing older adults, with significantly higher odds for those having ACEs.
  • Key mediating factors identified were depression, mental illness, and self-rated health, indicating that these issues may exacerbate the risk of elder abuse among those with a history of ACEs.
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  • The study assessed the impact of the Yokohama Walking Point Program on healthy life expectancy among older adults by analyzing step count data and participation incentives.
  • Researchers included 4,298 individuals over 65 years old and categorized them into groups based on their program participation and whether they uploaded step counts.
  • Results indicated that those who actively uploaded their pedometer data had a lower risk of needing long-term care compared to non-participants, suggesting that engaging in walking activity can benefit the health of older adults.
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Objectives The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism is promoting the introduction of green slow mobility (GSM) vehicles (can drive up to 20 km/h on public roads) for mobility assistance and potential long-term care prevention. We identified four key factors to pinpoint the challenges and enhance opportunities for introducing GSM; GSM's operational achievements, a comparison of the characteristics of GSM users and non-users, purpose for using GSM, and observation of GSM's contribution to long-term care prevention among older adults.Methods A pilot GSM study was conducted in Ikeda City, Osaka Prefecture, from October to December 2022.

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Objectives This study aimed to examine the cut-off point of the Risk Assessment Scale (RAS) for predicting the 9-year risk of functional disability among older Japanese adults.Methods This prospective, 9-year follow-up study used data from the Sasaguri Genkimon Study in Fukuoka. Of the 2,629 older adults who did not have functional disabilities and participated in the baseline survey in 2011, 2,254 with complete data were included in the analysis.

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Aim: This study clarified the association between the amount of physical activity and apathy after one year among community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: Two hundred community-dwelling older adults (mean age: 74.3±5.

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  • - The study explored how participation in community-level group sports can influence health outcomes, specifically mortality rates from all causes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer in older adults.
  • - Data from a large cohort of over 43,000 older adults in Japan revealed that community sports participation is linked to a reduced risk of all-cause and cancer-related deaths, with a significant decrease for every 10% increase in participation rates.
  • - The findings highlight the potential of community sports programs to enhance health and longevity among older individuals, suggesting that encouraging these activities could be beneficial for public health strategies.
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To resolve problems in the dietary life of university athletes, education is essential to enable athletes to change their own dietary behavior. The purpose of this research was to verify the effectiveness of sports nutrition education based on self-determination theory (SDT). The participants were 36 male university rowers.

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  • - Older adults who participate in group sports and exercises experience more significant health benefits compared to those who exercise alone, with the study aiming to assess these benefits and changes in frailty levels over time.
  • - Analyzed data from 33,746 men and 36,799 women aged 65 and older showed that, over three years, frailty scores increased, indicating worsening health.
  • - Key activities that helped prevent frailty increases included hiking, walking, tennis, ground golf, and weight exercises, highlighting the importance of specific group sports for seniors' well-being in Japan.
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Objectives: The association between socioeconomic status (SES) and the onset of depressive symptoms has attracted considerable attention. However, few studies have simultaneously examined the association of multiple SES indicators, including "assets," with the onset of depressive symptoms. Therefore, this study examined the association of four SES indicators in old age ('years of education' 'equivalent income,' 'equivalent assets,' and 'the longest-held job') with new-onset depressive symptoms in a large Japanese dataset.

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Purpose: To investigate the association between comorbidities associated with diabetes and higher-level functional status as well as the relationship between comorbidities associated with diabetes and higher-level functional status in older patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who have better social networks.

Methods: Participants were outpatients with type 2 diabetes aged ≥ 65 years, excluding individuals with severe cardiovascular or respiratory illness, hyperglycaemic crisis, type 1 diabetes, or diabetic foot. The Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology Index of Competence (TMIG-IC) was used to evaluate the higher-level functional status.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study examined the incidence of functional disability in older adults in Japan, utilizing data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study with two cohorts: one from 2010-2013 and another from 2016-2019.
  • - Findings showed a decrease in functional disability rates among participants aged 65-74 years and those aged 75 and older between the two cohorts, although the significance diminished after factoring in social participation and other variables.
  • - The research suggests that increased social participation may play a crucial role in reducing functional disability among older adults, indicating a potential area for intervention and support.
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[Purpose] This study aimed to determine the relationship between acceleration parameters in the sit-to-stand (STS) movement and falls, and the strength of the association between acceleration in STS movements and falls in older adults. [Participants and Methods] In total, 330 older adults were included. Four acceleration parameters were measured in STS movement: maximum acceleration (MA), velocity (MV), power (MP), and stand-up time (ST).

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  • The study investigated how sedentary behavior (SB) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) relate to dementia, functional disability, and mortality among older adults in Japan, involving 90,471 individuals aged 65 and over.
  • Results showed that spending 8 or more hours in SB increased the risk of dementia, disability, and death significantly compared to less than 3 hours, with those who did no MVPA having the highest risks.
  • Regardless of other factors like sex and health conditions, prolonged SB was linked to higher risks, while engaging in high MVPA could lessen but not eliminate those risks, indicating the importance of balancing activity levels.
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Acceleration parameters in sit-to-stand (STS) movements are useful for measuring lower-limb function in older adults. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between acceleration in STS movements and physical function and the test-retest reliability of acceleration parameters in older adults. We performed cross-sectional analyses on 244 older adults including 107 men (mean age: 77.

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  • The study investigated how participating in community gathering places impacts various health and well-being outcomes for older adults in Japan, focusing on data collected over three years (2013, 2016, and 2019).
  • Results showed that participation was linked to improved physical and cognitive health, enhanced social interactions, and increased prosocial behaviors like volunteering. However, the evidence was less conclusive for mental health and health behaviors.
  • The findings suggest that encouraging older adults to engage in community activities can promote not only disability prevention but also overall well-being through greater social connections.
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Objective: Living a happy life is an essential issue for old adults. However, how eating with others contributes to happiness and whether this association is different by living arrangements or not is unknown. The current study examined the relationship between the frequency of eating with others and happiness among older adults according to their living arrangements using 3-year longitudinal data.

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  • Individual and community-level social capital can help prevent cognitive decline, particularly focusing on dementia onset among older adults in Japan.
  • The study analyzed data from 35,921 older adults over nine years, finding that higher civic participation and social cohesion in communities are linked to lower dementia rates, especially in females.
  • Promoting civic engagement and fostering community connections might be effective strategies to delay or prevent dementia in older adults.
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  • The study focused on understanding how exercise tolerance changed over time in patients undergoing phase III cardiac rehabilitation (CR) during and after an emergency declaration.
  • 101 patients were analyzed, revealing a drop in peak oxygen uptake and anaerobic threshold three months post-declaration, but levels returned to near pre-declaration status by twelve months.
  • Those with multiple health issues and slower walking speeds were found to have a lower exercise capacity and were less likely to recover fully over time.
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  • This study explored the relationship between whole-body, arm, and leg extracellular-to-intracellular water resistance ratios and physical functions, as well as muscle mass, in older adults using specialized bioelectrical impedance analysis.
  • A total of 988 community-dwelling older adults participated, with physical function evaluated through various tests, revealing significant positive correlations between resistance ratios and measures of strength, mobility, and balance.
  • The findings suggest that the resistance ratios can be a quick and effective way to identify older adults at risk for poor physical function, emphasizing the importance of leg ratio over arm and whole-body ratios in assessing lower extremity performance.
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